Wheatsville Co-op Austin, TX

[Dan gillotte <dangillotte AT gmail.com>]

Hi friends,

At this point, all systems are go for opening the new additionTHIS Saturday at 9am. We are REALLY REALLY excited and I hope that you are, too!
The Deli will be closing early at 6pm on Friday to get ready for the big move. Sorry for any inconvenience on that. We will have food in our self service case all day Friday. Come in on Saturday for all your delicious favorites all in  a new and wonderful space!

What will you find in the new addition?
The new addition will be in transition over the next several weeks as we renovate the rest of the store, but as of this weekend and early next week, expect to see:

Expanded deli with lots of Popcorn Tofu, new Organic and Fair Trade Coffee Drinks, and fresh baked bread including an organic french baguette! Behind the scenes, the deli staff will be moving out of one of the most difficult parts of the store to work in to a majorly-awesome, super-professional work space. I'm so stoked for them. One thing that I would like to share with you... our deli crew will no longer be accepting tips. The staff of the deli get the same good wages and benefits as the rest of our hard working staff, so we decided that when the deli moved we would "leave the tip jar behind." While the deli deserves your praise (and graciously accepts it!), you no longer need to "pay" any more than the menu prices. Thanks to all the generous tippers of the past. The deli appreciated it.

Expanded seafood and quick to fix meat options in a full service area! Some delicious quick to fix items you can look forward to: 
Bacon chedder patties: Fresh niman ground beef, bacon, chedder cheese, garlic. Great for grilling. Terrific all-in-one hamburger
Turkey Burgers: Savory herbs and fresh onion and garlic. Great low fat hamburger.
Pecan tilapia: Sustainable tilapia, coated with pecans. Great southern flavor.
Lemon Pepper catfish: Fond of the Lemon pepper catfish? He'res a way you can make these zesty filets at home. Made with locally raised catfish.
Pork loin stuffed with our own Italian sausage: Fresh Niman pork loin, stuffed with our house made spicy Italian sausge. Bake, pan fry, or grill and serve with a starch and fresh veggies. Large pieces may feed 2 people.
 
Expanded frozen foods department: Frozen will be moved on Saturday, but the huge new influx of great new items are coming Monday. Look for more ice cream and frozen vegan treats, too! More local products and lots and lots of the Amy's deliciousness that you love.

Relocated Refrigerated department: (this is scheduled for Tuesday) a new more shoppable refrigerated dept is right around the corner. No more traffic jams in produce! More space for your favorite stuff and maybe some new items, too. This is a department where the improvement is most noticeable on the staff side as one of the worst parts of the store to work in gets GREATLY improved.

Skylights! Wow, the skylights are really one of the nicest features of the new space. I can't wait until you can see them!

New bathrooms! Yep, you've put up with a port-a-potty for three weeks, well this is your reward! Two nice new clean bathrooms! 

Other renovation updates:
We are entering the phase that will affect you the most right now. Expect to find things have moved. Please don't be afraiud to ask any staff for help in finding your favorite item or department!

The parking lot improvement phase is still coming and I apologize for the challenges that that presents. We do have new ADA accessible spots. (Thanks for your patience as we dealt with that thorny issue.) Coming early or late makes parking easier. 

Thank you so much for your continued excellent support!

Savor the Season that Seems to Linger   
Usually by this time in late March the citrus season has waned a bit. This year that seems not to be the case. This is good thing for your taste buds, because these late season citrus fruits are amazing. Right now, the blood oranges are exceptionally amazing, as are the dandy and murcott tangerines. The Rio Star grapefruit continue to be a customer favorite; great for juicing or careful eating with a spoon (watch those eyes, people!). Also, we have a great deal on Texas valencia orange bags, great for juicing!!!
 
Cilantro... You Know, for Kids...
We are currently selling locally grown cilantro from the kids at Urban Roots. This is a great program sponsered by Youth Launch. Look for more of their product as the season progresses.
 
Not a new produce department yet, but some changes for you anyway!
We rearranged a portion of the produce line in an attempt to make shopping easier for you. We have moved the locally grown, organinc Pure Luck herbs to a better location below the mushrooms, where they are easy to peruse. Also the ginger has moved to back of the dry table near the garlic, and shallots. New World Sprouts have also been moved over to the deli self serve case, near the pre packed salad clamshells.
 
P/2 Starter Tomatoes   
We will be carrying organic tomato starters from P/2 Organics for a few weeks. They are $2.69 a piece and there are a few varieties: celebrity, early girl, yellow pear, sun sugar, and sweet 100. Remember... their veggies don't do drugs.

That's all for now, because it's 8:40pm and tomorrow is another BUSY day!

I hope to see you this weekend in the NEW Addition!

Dan Gillotte
Wheatsville GM and e-mail guy and night owl...